Here's a list of upcoming vinyl releases in the U.S.. Please note release dates and item details are subject to change without notice. What is listed is the most up-to-date details, as of the date of this post, based on information provided by the labels listed below, or their exclusive distributor.
Information listed below will supersede any previous listing information.
12" and 7" singles follow the LP's in each release date section.
Most notable additions are the Queen reissue LP's along with the new Queen album with Paul Rodgers, all the Blue Note reissues, Sex Pistols limited edition, Raphael Saadiq 7" box set version of his new album (released 2 weeks after the regular vinyl LP version of his album), and Big Brother & The Holding Company (Mono Edition) LP. Also, there's quite a lot of release date changes since last week.
FRIDAY 9/12/08 RELEASE DATE
Metallica - Death Magnetic [2 LP] (in Stoughton jacket) ( Warner Bros. - 1-508732 / 093624983552 ) $22.98
Metallica - Death Magnetic [Deluxe Edition] [5 45-RPM LPs] (180 Gram Black Vinyl in a Stoughton box that includes a lithograph and bonus audio CD) ( Warner Bros. - 1-512119 / 093624984368 ) $114.98
9/16/08 RELEASE DATE
Boston - Boston [1 LP] 180 Gram Vinyl ( Columbia / Legacy - 88697335571 / 886973355718 ) $18.98
Charles Mingus - Mingus Ah Um - [1 LP] 180 Gram Vinyl ( Columbia / Legacy - 88697335681 / 886973356814 ) $18.98
Chemical Brothers - Brotherhood [2 LP] ( Astralwerks - 34818 / 5099923481817 ) $25.98
James - Hey Ma [LP] ( Decca U.S. - B001185301 / 602517814875 ) $17.98
Johnny Cash - 16 Biggest Hits [1 LP] ( Columbia / Legacy - 88697335701 / 886973357018 ) $16.98
Judas Priest - British Steel [1 LP] ( Columbia / Legacy - 88697341991 / 886973419915 ) $16.98
Lindsey Buckingham - Gift Of Screws [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl includes Bonus CD) ( Reprise - REP 512970 / 093624983217 ) $24.98
Marc Broussard - Keep Coming Back [2 LP] (includes Bonus CD) ( Atlantic - ATL 512257 / 075678981784 ) $18.98
Ne-Yo - Year Of The Gentleman [2 LP] ( Def Jam - B001141001 / 602517742642 ) $15.98
Raphael Saadiq - The Way I See It [LP] (includes download insert) ( Columbia - 88697085851 / 886970858519 ) $18.98
Yelle - Pop-Up [2 LP] [Contains Bonus 12'' ft. 4 Thundering Dancefloor Remixes of her hits] ( Astralwerks - 97867 / 094639786718 ) $20.98
Murs - Can It Be (Half A Million Dollars And 18 Months Later) / Me And This Jawn [WHITE VINYL in Special Jacket) ( Warner Brothers - MS-514105 / 093624982814 ) $5.98
Wink - Stay Out All Night (Todd Terry / HCCR Remixes) (LIMITED EDITION WHITE LABEL) ( Ovum White Label - OVM-191 / OVM-191 ) $6.98
Ace Hood - Ride (ft. Trey Songz) ( Def Jam - B001190911 / 602517825420 ) $5.98
Cassie - Official Girl (feat. Lil Wayne) ( Bad Boy - MS-516082 / 075678970498 ) $5.98
DJ Danny Diggs - Ladies Anthem [Part 1 & 2] ( AV8 - AV783 / 607938007830 ) $6.98
DJ LBR ft. Fatman Scoop - One More Time (prod. by DJ LBR] b/w Serato Scratch Live digital time coding [Picture Disc] ( AV8 - AV784 / 607938007840 ) $16.98
Fatman Scoop - Where Them Big Dogs At [prod. DJ Illynoize] ( AV8 - AV782 / AV8782 ) $6.98
Laura Izibor - From My Heart To Yours (DJ Premier Remix) ( Atlantic - MS-516090 / 075678970450 ) $5.98
Jack's Mannequin - The Resolution [7 inch Single] ( Sire - S-515889 / 054391991614 ) $4.98
9/23/08 RELEASE DATE
All That Remains - Overcome [2LP] ( Razor & Tie - 79301829991 / 793018299916 ) $15.98
Allman Brothers Band - Live At The Fillmore East [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Mercury - 8232731 / 042282327314 ) $24.98
Anne Briggs - Anne Briggs (180 Gram Vinyl) ( 4 Men With Beards - FMN164 / 646315116410 ) $18.98
Anne Briggs - The Time Has Come (180 Gram Vinyl) ( 4 Men With Beards - FMN165 / 646315116519 ) $18.98
Bauhaus - Burning From The Inside (180 Gram Vinyl) ( 4 Men With Beards - FMN512 / 646315151213 ) $18.98
Bauhaus - The Sky's Gone Out (180 Gram Vinyl) ( 4 Men With Beards - FMN511 / 646315151114 ) $18.98
Belle And Sebastian - Dear Catastrophe Waitress [2 LP] (in Gatefold Jacket with MP3 Coupon) ( Rough Trade - RTD 000801 / 883870008013 ) $29.98
Bob Marley & The Wailers - Burnin' [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Island - 5488941 / 731454889414 ) $19.98
Buckcherry - Black Butterfly [2LP] [Includes Bonus CD] ( Atlantic - 511262 / 075678988882 ) $21.98
Cat Stevens - Teaser And The Firecat [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( A&M - 5468851 / 731454688512 ) $19.98
Cold War Kids - Loyalty to Loyalty [2LP] Double Gatefold ( Downtown - DWT700421 / 878037004212 ) $19.98
Common Market - Tobacco Road [2LP] ( HYN - 59370 / 825005937010 ) $18.98
David Gilmour - Live In Gdansk [5 LP Box] (180 Gram Vinyl and Includes Digtal Download Card) ( Columbia - 886973447017 / 886973447017 ) $99.98
Dead Can Dance - Dead Can Dance [180 Gram Vinyl 2LP] ( VIN - 265003 / 881626500316 ) $24.98
Dead Can Dance - Garden of Arcade Delights Ep [Deluxe Edition 2LP 180 Gram Vinyl] ( VIN - 265004 / 881626500415 ) $44.98
Def Leppard - Pyromania [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Mercury - 8103081 / 042281030819 ) $19.98
Derek & The Dominos - Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Motown - 5310373 / 600753103739 ) $24.98
Earpeace - Earpeace Ep (X) ( Porter Records - 3 / 0724101946646 ) $16.98
Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Mercury - 5310374 / 600753103746 ) $24.98
Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) (printed sleeves) ( Interscope - 0694906291 / 606949062910 ) $24.98
Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Geffen - GHS24148 / 720642414811 ) $19.98
Heartbreak - Lies [2LP] ( Lex Records - LEX074LP / 878390001262 ) $15.98
Jackson Browne - Time The Conqueror [2LP] ( Inside Recordings - INR92318 / 696751923189 ) $24.98
Jenny Lewis - Acid Tongue [2 LP] (includes Bonus CD and one-etched sided vinyl) ( Warner Bros - WB 508668 / 093624986096 ) $22.98
Johnny Cash - Johnny Cash Remixed [2LP] ( Music World Ent - CR9295121 / 616892951216 ) $17.98
Kiss - Alive! [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) (Gatefold Jacket and printed sleeves & booklet) ( Mercury - 8227801 / 042282278012 ) $29.98
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Second Helping [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Geffen - MCA1686 / 076732168615 ) $24.98
Mogwai - The Hawk is Howling [2LP] 180 Gram Vinyl includes MP3 coupon ( Matador - OLE832-1 / 744861083214 ) $22.98
Motorhead - Ace Of Spades [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Sanctuary - 5310375 / 600753103753 ) $19.98
Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Nothing - B001169701 / 731452212610 ) $29.98
Peter Bjorn and John - Seaside Rock [LP] (Instrumental Album on WHITE Vinyl with Download Insert Card) ( AG Star Time Intl - 88697365391 / 886973653913 ) $21.98
Peter Frampton - Frampton Comes Alive [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl in Gatefold Jacket) ( A&M - 7502165051 / 075021650510 ) $24.98
Pixies - Bossanova [LP] ( 4AD - 700101 / 652637001013 ) $14.98
Pixies - Trompe Le Monde [LP] ( 4AD - 710141 / 652637101416 ) $14.98
Police - Synchronicity [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( A&M - 3937351 / 082839373517 ) $19.98
Pretenders - Break Up the Concrete [2LP] ( Shangri-la music - 101011 / 811771010118 ) $24.98
Santogold - Santogold [2LP] w/ Digital download Card ( Downtown - DWT70034 / 878037003413 ) $18.98
Steely Dan - Gaucho [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) (Gatefold Jacket) ( Geffen - MCA1693 / 076732169315 ) $24.98
Stephen Stills - Just Roll Tape (April 26th 1968) [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analaog Mastering in Gatefold Jacket with Insert) ( Rhino Records - RHI 510892 / 081227992972 ) $24.98
Stevie Wonder - Music Of My Mind [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Motown - 5010903141 / 050109031412 ) $29.98
The Who - Who's Next [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Geffen - 8136511 / 042281365119 ) $19.98
Traffic - The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Island - 8427791 / 042284277914 ) $19.98
TV On The Radio - Dear Science [LP] ( DGC - B001188201 / 602517840492 ) $15.98
Velvet Underground - Velvet Underground & Nico [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Polydor - 8232901 / 042282329011 ) $24.98
Apologist - Revolution EP ( Wave Music - WM50202-1 / 790185020213 ) $7.98
Big Boi - Sumthin's Gotta Give ft. Mary J. Blige ( Jive - 88697389181 / 886973891810 ) $6.98
Danny Tenaglia - Space Dance [Remixes] (2x12'' in Glow In The Dark Jacket) ( Tommy Boy - TB-2583-1 / 661868258318 ) $9.98
Ican - Pa' Mi Gente (includes Carl Craig Dub) / Chiclet's Theme ( Planet E - PLE65302-1 / PLE65302-1 ) $6.98
Nina Sky - Curtain Call ft. Rick Ross ( J Records - 88697387941 / 886973879412 ) $6.98
Nobody Presents Blank Blue - Dive EP ( Ubiquity - UBR11237-1 / 780661123712 ) $7.99
Steve Lawler - Femme Fetale (includes Ripperton Remix) ( Ovum - OVM-192 / OVM-192 ) $6.98
Frank Fairfield - I've Always Been A Rambler [48 gram 7''] ( Tompkins Square - 601183300514 / 601183300514 ) $4.98
Rachael Yamagata - The Resolution [7 inch Single] ( Warner Brothers - S516364 / 054391991324 ) $4.98
9/30/08 RELEASE DATE
9th Ward - I Ain't Looking Back [2 LP] ( Island - B001140801 / 602517734456 ) $15.98
Anberlin - New Surrender [2LP] ( Universal Republic - B001204301 / 602517845053 ) $15.98
Ben Folds - Way To Normal [2LP 180 Gram Vinyl Gatefold jacket w/digital download card] ( Epic - 88697098491 / 886970984911 ) $21.98
Ben Folds - Way To Normal [Super Deluxe Box Set] [2LP 180 Gram Vinyl includes 2 CD + 1 DVD + Poster in Foil-Stamped Box] ( Epic - 88697357322 / 886973573228 ) $99.99
Big Brother & The Holding Company (Janis Joplin) - Big Brother & The Holding Company [LP] (Mono Edition) ( Sundazed - 5188 / 090771518811 ) $19.98
Bleeding Through - Declaration [2LP] ( Trustkill - TK116V / 824953011612 ) $12.98
Blue Oyster Cult - Agents Of Fortune [1 LP] ( Columbia / Legacy - 88697335711 / 886973357118 ) $16.98
Boz Scaggs - Speak Low [2LP] ( Decca U.S. - B001202501 / 602517843462 ) $17.98
Buena Vista Social Club - Buena Vista Social Club at Carnegie Hall [2 LP] [180 Gram Vinyl w/ 2 Bonus CDs] ( Nonesuch - A-514415 / 075597987294 ) $29.98
Colby O'Donis - Colby O [2LP] ( Geffen - B001129001 / 602517792845 ) $15.98
Dead Confederate - Wrecking Ball [2LP] w/ Download Card ( Razor & Tie - 79301829821 / 793018298216 ) $16.98
Delbert McClinton - Live [LP] 180 Gram Vinyl ( New West - NW50151 / 607396501526 ) $24.98
Dragonforce - Ultra Beatdown [LP] (w/bonus download) ( Roadrunner Records - A-179371 / 016861793715 ) $16.98
Earth Wind & Fire - Gratitude [2LP] ( Legacy / Columbia - 88697341991 / 886973419916 ) $24.98
Innerpartysystem - Innerpartysystem [2 LP] ( Island - B001135901 / 602517825246 ) $15.98
Jack's Mannequin - Glass Passenger [2 LP] ( Sire - A-371452 / 093624989738 ) $21.98
Jimi Hendrix - Band Of Gypsys [LP] (180 Gram RED-Colored Vinyl) (LIMITED EDITION) ( Capitol Records - 16319 / 0077771631917 ) $20.98
John Lennon - Imagine [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl plus poster and postcard) (LIMITED EDITION) ( Capitol Records - 03379 / 0077770337919 ) $29.98
Lou Reed - Berlin [1 LP] ( Columbia / Legacy - 88697001041 / 886970010412 ) $16.98
Michael Jackson - Thriller [LP] [Picture Disc] ( Legacy / Epic - 88697353391 / 886973533918 ) $19.98
Miles Davis - Kind Of Blue 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition [LP] (180 Gram BLUE Vinyl plus 2 CD's / 1 DVD / Book / Poster in custom Gatefold Media Jacket) ( Columbia / Legacy - 886973355220 / 886973355220 ) $105.98
Murs - Murs For President [2 LP] [Red & White Colored Vinyl] ( Warner Brothers - A-176828 / 093624989035 ) $21.98
Nikka Costa - Pebble To A Pearl [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl in Gatefold Jacket) ( Stax / Fantasy - STX31021 / 888072310216 ) $24.98
Nina Simone - Remixed & Reimagined [LP] ( Legacy / Columbia - 88697335611 / 886973356111 ) $16.98
Paul Kantner / Jefferson Starship - Blows Against The Empire [LP] ( Legacy / Columbia - 88697335671 / 886973356715 ) $16.98
Plain White T's - World [2LP] ( Hollywood - D000264101 / 050087129002 ) $17.98
Sam Cooke - One Night Stand - Live At The Harlem Square Club [LP] 180 Gram ( Legacy / Columbia - 88697337901 / 886973379011 ) $18.98
Sublime - Sublime [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Geffen - B001169601 / 602517800083 ) $29.98
T.I. - Paper Trail [2 LP] (VERY LIMITED) (single vinyl) ( Grand Hustle / Atlantic - A-512376 / 075678989490 ) $18.98
Trio Of Doom - Trio Of Doom [LP] 180 Gram ( Legacy / Columbia - 88697343311 / 886973433119 ) $18.98
Various Artists - Nick And Norah's Infinite Playlist Original Motion Picture Soundtrack ( Atlantic - A-516007 / 075678970535 ) $18.98
Willie Nelson - Red Headed Stranger [LP] ( Legacy / Columbia - 88697335731 / 886973357316 ) $16.98
Kevin Rudolf - Let It Rock (feat. Lil Wayne) ( Cash Money - B001207711 / 602517851054 ) $5.98
Ludacris - What Them Girls Like (feat. Chris Brown & Sean Garrett) ( Def Jam - B001213711 / 602517859982 ) $5.98
Mariah Carey - Migrate (feat. T-Pain) ( Island - B001213811 / 602517859838 ) $5.98
Ne-Yo - Miss Independent ( Def Jam - B001211111 / 602517855984 ) $5.98
Polly Scattergood - Nitrogen Pink [10 inch vinyl] ( Mute - 724596939703 / 724596939703 ) $9.98
T.I. - Live Your Life (feat. Rihanna) ( Atlantic - MS-516201 / 075678970344 ) $5.98
Beck - Gamma Ray b/w Gamma Ray (Jay Reatard Version) (7 Inch Single) ( Interscope - B001211521 / 602517857490 ) $2.98
Beck - Gamma Ray b/w Bonfire Blondes (7 Inch Single) ( Interscope - B001211421 / 602517857483 ) $2.98
Jack White & Alicia Keys - Another Way To Die (7 Inch Single) ( RCA - 88697390167 / 886973901670 ) $6.98
Madlib - Go! (feat. Guilty Simpson) b/w Gamble On Ya Boy (feat. Defari) (LIMITED EDITION 7'') ( Rapster / BBE - 730003907074 / 730003907074 ) $6.98
Raphael Saadiq - The Way I See It [7 Inch Box Set] ( Columbia - 88697369767 / 886973697672 ) $33.98
10/7/08 RELEASE DATE
Amanda Palmer - Who Killed Amanda Palmer [LP w/bonus download] ( Roadrunner Records - A-179251 / 016861792510 ) $16.98
Black Sabbath - Dehumanizer [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Rhino/Warner Bros/Reprise - A-26965 / 081227990770 ) $17.98
Black Sabbath - Heaven And Hell [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Rhino/Warner Bros/Reprise - A-3372 / 081227990794 ) $17.98
Black Sabbath - Live Evil [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Rhino/Warner Bros/Reprise - A-23742 / 081227990800 ) $24.98
Black Sabbath - Mob Rules [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Rhino/Warner Bros/Reprise - A-3605 / 081227990787 ) $17.98
Bob Dylan - Tell Tale Signs: The Bootleg Series Vol. 8 (Rare And Unreleased 1989-2006) [4 LP Box] (180 Gram Vinyl and Includes Download Card and Book) ( Columbia - 88697357961 / 886973579619 ) $109.98
Cocteau Twins - Head Over Heels [Deluxe Edition] [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl plus Sunburst & Snowblind EP on Lilac Colored Vinyl] ( Virtual - 009 / 881626500613 ) $44.98
Cocteau Twins - Head Over Heels [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Virtual - 010 / 881626500514 ) $24.98
Fijiya & Miyagi - Lightbulbs [LP] ( Deaf Dumb and Blind - DDB30034 / 802043003419 ) $15.98
Kardinal Offishall - Not 4 Sale [2LP] ( Geffen - B001164001 / 602517791725 ) $15.98
Margot and The Nuclear So & So's - Animal! [180 Gram Vinyl includes download insert [2LP] ( Epic - 88697356851 / 886973568514 ) $21.98
Margot and The Nuclear So & So's - Not Animal includes download insert 180 Gram Vinyl 2 LP] ( Epic - 88697210801 / 883972108018 ) $18.98
Marty Paich - I Get A Boot Out Of You [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Rhino Records - RRW 360572 / 081227994853 ) $24.98
Michelle Williams - Unexpected [Includes download insert] [2LP] ( Columbia - 886970147316 / 886970147316 ) $20.98
Moldy Peaches - Moldy Peaches ( Rough Trade - RTD 000141 / 883870001410 ) $15.98
Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Warner Brothers - A-514078 / 093624982913 ) $29.98
Of Montreal - Skeletal Lampin [2LP] [180 Gram Vinyl Double gatefold jacket] ( Polyvinyl records - PRC160 / 644110016010 ) $24.98
Rachael Yamagata - Elephants Teeth Sinking Into Heart [2LP] Colored Vinyl ( Warner Brothers - A-512764 / 093624982647 ) $21.98
Rise Against - Appeal To Reason [LP] [Limited Edition Picture Disc] ( Interscope - B001207601 / 602517850248 ) $19.98
Rise Against - Appeal To Reason [LP] [Limited Edition w/full album digital download] ( Interscope - B001190401 / 602517850231 ) $15.98
Robin Thicke - Something Else [2LP] ( Interscope - B001179301 / 602517861664 ) $15.98
Maino - Hood Love ft. Trey Songz b/w Hi Hater [Remix] ft. T.I. Swizz Beats Plies Jadakiss Fabolous ( Atlantic - MS-516441 / 075678970184 ) $5.98
10/14/08 RELEASE DATE
Ace Hood - Gutta [2LP] ( Def Jam - B001177301 / 602517806412 ) $15.98
Elvis Presley - Elvis Presley [LP] ( Legacy - 88697356961 / 886973569610 ) $16.98
Herbaliser - Cant Help This Feeling [LP] ( K7 - 37226 / 730003722608 ) $17.98
Insane Clown Posse - Riddle Box [2LP] ( Legacy - 88697369721 / 886973697214 ) $24.98
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced? [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) (Gatefold Jacket and includes booklet) ( Geffen - MCA211608 / 008811160814 ) $34.98
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Axis: Bold As Love [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) (Gatefold Jacket and includes booklet) ( Geffen - MCA11601 / 008811160111 ) $24.98
Joe Satriani - Surfing With The Alien ( Legacy - 88697383491 / 886973834916 ) $16.98
Knux - Remind Me In 3 Days [2LP] ( Interscope - B001209201 / 602517854246 ) $15.98
Lucinda Williams - Little Honey [LP] ( Lost Highway - B001143401 / 602517741768 ) $17.98
Ludacris - Theater Of The Mind [2LP] ( Def Jam - B001202001 / 602517827554 ) $15.98
Madlib - Wlib Am: King Of The Wigflip [2LP] ( Rapster - 39070 / 730003907012 ) $23.98
Mighty Underdogs - Droppin Science Fiction [2LP] ( Definitive Jux - 88165 / 600308816510 ) $17.98
Peter Tosh - Legalize It ( Legacy - 88697335691 / 886973356913 ) $16.98
Ray LaMontagn - Gossip In The Grain [2LP] ( RCA - 88697326701 / 886973267011 ) $21.98
Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl with printed inner sleeve - VERY LIMITED) ( Warner Brothers/Rhino - RRW3147 / 081227988876 ) $17.98
U2 - Under Blood Red Sky (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Island - B001095001 / 602517642850 ) $28.98
Various Artists - Wanted! The Outlaws [LP] ( Legacy - 88697356191 / 886973561911 ) $16.98
Weather Report - Heavy Weather [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Legacy - 88697351421 / 886973514214 ) $18.98
Joe Satriani - Surfing With The Alien ( Legacy - 88697383491 / 886973834916 ) $16.98
Decemberists - Always The Bridesmaid: A Singles Series Vol. 1 ( Y.A.B.B. / Jealous Butcher - 601183300613 / 601183300613 ) $9.99
10/21/08 RELEASE DATE
And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead - Festival Thyme [LP] ( Justice Records - JR35012 / 719488350124 ) $10.98
Cocoa Tea - Sweet Sound Of Cocoa Tea [2LP] ( VP - VP41231 / 054645412315 ) $19.98
Congos - Heart Of The Congos [Deluxe Edition] [2 LP] ( VP - VP4143 / 054645414319 ) $19.98
Cutty Ranks - Limb By Limb [2LP] ( VP - VP41241 / 054645412414 ) $19.98
Doom - Born Into This [LP] ( Lex Records - LEX069LP0 / 878390001286 ) $17.98
Drew Brown - Tiago La Is Losing The Plot [LP] ( Lex Records - LEX056LP / 878390001040 ) $9.98
Eagles - Hotel California [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Elektra / Rhino - ECG 1084 / 081227991517 ) $24.98
James Taylor - Covers [LP] ( Hear Music - HRM31043 / 888072310438 ) $17.98
Joe Gibbs - Scorchers From The Mighty [2LP] ( VP - VP41301 / 054645413015 ) $19.98
La Dusseldorf - La Dusseldorf [180 Gram Vinyl] ( 4 Men With Beards - 166 / 0646315116618 ) $21.98
La Dusseldorf - Viva [180 Gram Vinyl] ( 4 Men With Beards - 167 / 0646315116717 ) $21.98
Mary Mary - The Sound [LP] includes download insert ( Columbia - 88697280871 / 886972808710 ) $18.98
Pj Harvey - To Bring You My Love [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Plain - 135 / 0646315513516 ) $21.98
Primus - Sailing The Seas Of Cheese [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Plain - 132 / 0646315513219 ) $21.98
Prince - Purple Rain [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Warner Bros / Rhino - RRW 25110 / 081227991494 ) $24.98
Van Halen - Van Halen [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Warner Bros / Rhino - RRW 3075 / 081227991487 ) $24.98
Van Morrison - Astral Weeks [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Warner Bros / Rhino - RRW 1768 / 081227990718 ) $24.98
Van Morrison - His Band And The Street Choir [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Warner Bros / Rhino - RRW 1884 / 081227990695 ) $24.98
Van Morrison - Moondance [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Warner Bros / Rhino - RRW 1835 / 081227990701 ) $24.98
Warren Zevon - Warren Zevon [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl Analog Mastering with insert) ( Elektra / Rhino - ECG 1060 / 081227991470 ) $24.98
10/28/08 RELEASE DATE
Amp Fiddler / Sly & Robbie - Inspiration Information Vol. 1 [2LP] ( K7 - 33038 / 730003303814 ) $23.98
Art Blakey & Jazz Messengers - Moanin' [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 95324 / 724349532410 ) $21.98
Beach Boys - Endless Summer [4 Color Gatefold Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl 2LP] ( Capitol - 42794 / 5099924279413 ) $25.98
Billie Holiday - Remixed & Reimagined [LP] ( Legacy - 88697352971 / 886973529713 ) $16.98
Blood Sweat & Tears - Child Is Father To The Man [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Legacy - 88697383481 / 886973834817 ) $18.98
Cannonball Adderley - Somethin Else [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 95329 / 724349532915 ) $21.98
Cheap Trick - At Budokan [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Legacy - 88697392171 / 886973921715 ) $18.98
Crime In Stereo - Selective Wreckage [2LP] ( Bridge 9 - 20204 / 811772020413 ) $13.98
Cure - 4:13 Dream [2LP] ( Geffen - B001091301 / 602517867086 ) $15.98
Dexter Gordon - Go! [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 98794 / 724349879416 ) $21.98
DJ Babu - Duck Season 3 [2LP] ( Nature Sounds - 07140 / 822720714018 ) $16.98
Greg Street - Greg Street Certified Worldwide [2LP] ( Interscope - B001164201 / 602517791770 ) $15.98
Hank Mobley - Soul Station [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 95343 / 724349534315 ) $21.98
Haunted - Versus [LP] ( Century Media - 18444 / 727701844411 ) $16.98
Herbie Hancock - Head Hunters [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Legacy - 8869792181 / 886973921814 ) $18.98
Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 95331 / 724349533110 ) $21.98
Horace Silver Quintet - Song For My Father [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 99002 / 724349900219 ) $21.98
Joe Henderson - Page One [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 98795 / 724349879515 ) $21.98
John Coltane - Blue Train [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 95326 / 724349532618 ) $21.98
John Legend - Evolver [2LP] ( Columbia - 88697137401 / 886971374018 ) $20.98
John Lennon - Rock N Roll [LP] [4 Color Single Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl] ( Capitol - 03419 / 077770341916 ) $20.98
Kaiser Chiefs - Off With Their Heads [LP] ( Motown - B001210601 / 602517859364 ) $15.98
Kenny Burrell - Midnight Blue [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 95335 / 724349533516 ) $21.98
Lady GaGa - The Fame [LP] ( Interscope - B001180501 / 602517854772 ) TBD
Lee Morgan - Sidewinder [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 95332 / 724349533219 ) $21.98
McCoy Tyner - Real McCoy [LP] (120 Gram Vinyl plus CD) ( Blue Note - 97807 / 724349780712 ) $21.98
Megadeth - Peace Sells [LP] [4 Color Gatefold Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl Inner Sleeve w/lyrics]] ( Capitol - 12526 / 077771252617 ) $20.98
Megadeth - Rust In Peace [LP] [4 Color Single Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl Inner Sleeve w/lyrics] ] ( Capitol - 91935 / 077779193516 ) $20.98
Paul McCartney & Wings - Band On The Run [LP] (4 Color Single Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl Bonus Digital Album Download w/Poster] ( Capitol Records - 42582 / 5099924258210 ) $20.98
People Under The Stairs - Fun Dmc [2LP] ( Gold Dust Media - 30007 / 730003000713 ) $23.98
Queen - A Day At The Races [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Hollywood - D000262101 / 050087128777 ) $19.98
Queen - A Night At The Opera [LP] ( Hollywood - D000262001 / 050087128760 ) $19.98
Queen - Queen II [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Hollywood - D000261801 / 050087128746 ) $19.98
Queen - Sheer Heart Attack [LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Hollywood - D000261901 / 050087128753 ) $19.98
Queen & Paul Rodgers - The Cosmos Rock [2 LP] (180 Gram Vinyl) ( Hollywood - D000261601 / 050087128722 ) $24.98
Queensryche - Operation Mindcrime [LP] [4 Color Single Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl Inner sleeve w/lyrics] ( Capitol - 48640 / 077774864015 ) $20.98
Roxy Music - For Your Pleasure [LP] [180 Gram Vinyl 4 Color Gatefold Jacket includes Poster of Jacket artwork] ( Capitol - 43032 / 5099924303217 ) $20.98
Roxy Music - Roxy Music [LP] [180 Gram Vinyl 4 Color Gatefold Jacket includes Poster of Jacket artwork] ( Capitol - 43033 / 5099924303316 ) $20.98
Slayer - Haunting The Chapel [LP] (Clear Vinyl with Blood Splattering) ( Metal Blade - 140342 / 039841403428 ) $21.98
Slayer - Hell Awaits [LP] (Gold Colored Vinyl with Blood Splattering) ( Metal Blade - 140312 / 039841403121 ) $24.98
Slayer - Live Undead [LP] (Silver Colored Vinyl with Blood Splattering) ( Metal Blade - 140332 / 039841403329 ) $24.98
Slayer - Show No Mercy [LP] (Red Colored Vinyl with Black Blood Splattering) ( Metal Blade - 140322 / 039841403220 ) $24.98
Social Distortion - Social Distortion [LP] ( Legacy - 88697351391 / 886973513910 ) $16.98
Steve Vai - Passion And Warfare [LP] ( Legacy - 88697383471 / 886973834718 ) $16.98
Stray Cats - Built For Speed [LP] [4 Color Single Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl] ( Capitol - 17070 / 077771707018 ) $20.98
The Band - Music From The Big Pink [LP] [4 Color Gatefold Jacket] [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Capitol - 42793 / 5099924279314 ) $20.98
The Band - The Band [LP] [4 Color Gatefold Jacket 180 Gram Vinyl] ( Capitol - 43008 / 5099924300810 ) $20.98
Verve - Urban Hymns [4 Color Single Jacket [2LP] 180 Gram Vinyl 2 Inner Sleeves w/photos] ( Capitol - 44913 / 724384491314 ) $25.98
Gentleman Reg - You Cant Get It Back ( Arts & Crafts - 00210 / 827590021051 ) $7.98
11/14/08 RELEASE DATE
Decemberists - Always The Bridesmaid: A Singles Series Volume II ( Y.A.B.B. / Jealous Butcher - 601183300712 / 601183300712 ) $9.99
12/2/08 RELEASE DATE
Decemberists - Always The Bridesmaid: A Singles Series Vol. III ( Y.A.B.B. / Jealous Butcher - 601183300811 / 601183300811 ) $9.99
All titles available for preorder at: http://www.vinyluniverse.com/
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Upcoming Vinyl Releases (LP's, 12" Singles and 7"s)
New Vinyl Releases In Stores This Week
Here's this week's releases on vinyl. In shops now, or by this coming Tuesday. For last week's releases, click here.
NEW LP's
18th Dye - Amorine Queen ( Crunchy Frog - FROG060-1 / 645211105719 ) $16.98
A Flock Of Seagulls - Space Age Love Songs [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Lilith - 151 / 8013252915116 ) $29.98
Bee Gees - Early Years [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Get Back - 661 / 8013252366116 ) $25.98
Calexico - Carried To Dust [LP] ( Quarterstick - QS108 / 036172010813 ) $15.98
Curtis Mayfield - Love Songs Vol.2 [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Get Back - 8065 / 8013252806513 ) $25.98
Damien Jurado - Caught In The Trees [LP] ( Secretly Canadian - SC175 / 656605017518 ) $14.98
Damned - Nasty Damned [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Lilith - 152 / 8013252915215 ) $29.98
Daniel Johnston - Fear Yourself [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Coppertree Records - 7 / 5021449175819 ) $29.98
Dinah Washington - I Was Born Ruth Lee Jones, But I Am Singing As Dinah [180 Gram Vinyl] ( Get Back - 7529 / 8013252752919 ) $25.98
DJ Andy Smith - Diggin' In The Bgp Vaults ( BGP - 195 / 0029667519519 ) $39.98
Horse Feathers - House With No Home [LP] ( Kill Rock Stars - KRS495 / 759656049511 ) $14.98
Kimya Dawson - Alphabutt [LP] ( K Records - KLP193 / 789856119318 ) $14.98
Maxine Sullivan - On Tour With The Allegheny Jazz Quartet ( Jump - 1214 / 0371012199410 ) $17.98
Michael Franti & Spearhead - All Rebel Rockers [LP] ( Anti / Epitaph - 045778690619 / 045778690619 ) $19.98
Mogwai - Batcat Ep ( Matador Records - MTD 108271 / 744861082712 ) $9.98
Natalie Cole - Still Unforgettable [LP] (in Gatefold Jacket with insert) ( Atco / DMI Records - RHP 512320 / 643027812128 ) $24.98
Okkervil River - The Stand Ins [2LP] ( Jagjaguwar - JAG124 / 656605212418 ) $14.98
Shaky Hands - Lunglight [LP] ( Kill Rock Stars - KRS498 / 759656049818 ) $14.98
Tricky - Knowle West Boy [LP] ( Domino - DNO194 / 801390019418 ) $18.98
Various Artists - Under The Sun Soundtrack [2LP] ( Ubiquity - UBR11238-1 / 780661123811 ) $19.98
Who - The Who By Numbers (150 Gram) ( Classic Records - 2490150 / 0746424901508 ) $25.98
NEW 12" SINGLES
Donnie Klang - Take You There (ft. P Diddy) / Dr. Love ( Bad Boy - MS-515901 / 075678970634 ) $5.98
Grouch - Artsy ( Legendary Music - LGM-50024 / 093624983071 ) $10.97
All titles available at: http://www.vinyluniverse.com/
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Led Zeppelin Mothership Special Edition Vinyl 'Making-of' video
To give you an idea of the level of care that goes into the manufacture of the box set, you can see a video of the process here.
Official mini-documentary on the making of the new 180 Gram vinyl boxsets for Led Zeppelin: Mothership and The Song Remains the Same.
[LedZeppelin.com]
Mothership and The Song Remains The Same Vinyl Box Sets available at:
Vinyl Universe
DJ Qbert's "How-To Unwarp Records"
There are many ways to fix warped vinyl. Here's a ghetto version by using the power of the sun. Qbert experiments on a hot day to see if the double glass trick really works with 2 tables. By heating up the record under two flat surfaces, to where it's kinda bendable, you can reshape it yourself. Just don't get it too hot and melt the LP! It's another reason you need the glass... because with out it, if you leave the record in the sun by itself, it will bend all crazy and wavy.
This video should be titled: how many times does Q say "2 pieces of glass"?
Don't you hate when you unwrap a record and it's warped? Well now you can un-warp wax you just unwrapped that was warped, so you're ready for war and up to par when you rap with your paw =P (say this 10 times super fast and your record will become straight).
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Timbap DJing
TIMBAP is a new solution for the digital DJ, developed by students and assistants of the University of Ulm. It provides a rugged tangible interface for browsing your music collection AND manipulating playback by scratching, pitching, skipping etc. Like many others it is based on an acoustic timecode signal recorded to vinyl records. In contrast to existing digital solutions however, it completely releases the DJ from mouse, keyboard and monitor. Instead it relies on physical interaction with the standard club turntable only.
The rotation of the turntable serves as a means for scrolling through the music collection automatically. The user stays in control though and can always intervene manually - for example by holding the record or winding it back. In order to provide goal-oriented search, we also support a direct absolute positioning using the tone arm.
Timbap does not require any modified hardware. The standard DJ setup (2 turntables and a mixer) can be turned into a timbap digital DJing workstation. The animated video shows how that is done. You only need a PC with a good audio interface, timecode vinyl, a projector and the magic timbap software.
As the projector will be quite close to the turntable, it does not have to be bright at all. However, the native resolution should be 640x480 or higher. Otherwise text will not be readable. Of course, you can also use the system without a projector and place your monitor at an ergonomically useful position.
For more info: www.timbap.de/dj[Electric Roulette]
Monday, September 1, 2008
Commodore is Back ... YES, that Commodore ...
No, your eyes are deceiving you. Commodore (as in Commdore Vic 20,C-64, Amiga) is bringing a Netbook to market. The UMMD 8010/F Netbook was shown off at IDF in Berlin. The specs sound familar to those following the scene (10 inch screen, camera, 1.6Ghz C7–M CPU, 80GB HD, 1GB of RAM, WiFi, Bluetooth optional) and the price is a bit on the high side for NetBooks at around $600. Maybe they are counting on a wave of nostalgia buying.
[Gottabemobile] via [Engadget]
And for your nostaligia lovers....
Vinyl’s back in the black on national, local levels
“Spin the Black Circle” won Pearl Jam its only Grammy back in 1996, but it seems the lyrics are more relevant than ever. The words “Pull it out/ A paper sleeve/ Oh, the joy/ Only you deserve conceit” were, and are, practically prophetic when they were written a decade and a half ago. Now, it seems vinyl is poised to take back its spot as “the” format to enjoy music. It has been — and, perhaps, will continue to be — a slow-changing process, but a forward-moving one at any rate.
Considering the album on which the song appears, Vitalogy, was the first album released on vinyl to crack the Billboard 200 since the rise of the CD, Eddie Vedder and company may well be able to see the future, be it near or distant.
The album debuted as vinyl-only on the chart two weeks before its “official” release on CD and made a rather impressive showing at number 55 back in 1994.
The concept of the vinyl pre-release seemed like a bit of a trend 14 years ago, with albums by Nirvana and Sonic Youth seeing similar treatment. Even in the mid-’90s the RIAA reported an 80 percent increase in vinyl sales from 1993 to 1994.
Just last month, Insound and the RIAA reported vinyl sales were again on the rise. Vinyl sales at Insound’s site increased “from twenty percent of its overall business one year ago to more than forty percent last quarter,” as prefixmag.com states. For Capitol Records, “vinyl sales [make] up the only sales growth in the past few months” despite the fact that vinyl holds a market share of less than 1 percent. Undeterred, Capitol sees fit to take this information and convert it into a reason to launch a “vinyl campaign,” as prefix calls it, with albums like A Perfect Circle’s Mer de Noms and Coldplay’s first two outings being vinyl-ized at the outset.
The important question is, of course, why the popularity of vinyl is (and has been) increasing. No two experts can agree on the same singular reason, but it’s interesting to note that many share the same explanations.
The “warm” sound of vinyl, as opposed to the “cold” sound of a CD or mp3, is one of the most common theories regarding its revival, though this is not the only common one cited. Purists and store owners alike also agree the way vinyl looks is also pleasing to music fans. A vinyl album cover is 12 inches versus the measly five that one gets with a CD and none with an mp3, unless you count the microscopic thing next to the song information.
Steve Manley, owner of B-Side Records on State Street, has his own thoughts as to why vinyl is making a comeback, though he was sure to point out that whether or not vinyl is here to stay is “hard to know.”
Having been in the business for 25 years, Manley has seen his share or trends come and go.
“My initial reaction is that it’s a fad; certainly, it’s a trend, but whether it’s permanent, there’s no way to know,” he said. I hope so.”
“I thought [vinyl] was pretty much dead 10, 15 years ago. Much to my surprise, it’s back, which I think is a good thing. It’s what I grew up with … and I respect the format,” he continued.
Manley shares the popular reasons for vinyl appreciation and thinks it may be one reason for its recent surge in popularity.
“[Vinyl] looks great. It’s just so much more aesthetically pleasing than a CD or an mp3. It’s a little more tactile and you can interact with it a little more intimately than a compact disc.”
As to whether vinyl sounds better, Manley believes it’s “often the case, not always.”
Steve Roloff, owner of Strictly Discs on Monroe Street, agrees with Manley about the reasons behind vinyl’s popularity, including its aesthetic qualities. Just as important, he agrees the vinyl “sound” is another reason the format is alive. Roloff affirms, “If you like that vinyl sound, there’s no way to replicate it.”
However, he disagrees with the fact that the format ever died.
“It’s been here the whole time — that’s an indisputable fact. It’s just you stopped seeing it massively in certain stores. A lot of people that don’t go to independent record stores that may go to places like Barnes and Noble … weren’t seeing vinyl. Vinyl’s always been an indie source,” Roloff said.
He then offered a more in-depth argument.
“Those people that never stopped listening to vinyl that raised kids and the kids are now out of the house, they got a little bit more time and a little more disposable income [so] they’re pulling the turntables back out and starting to buy vinyl on reissues or new releases. … Then you’ve got a younger crowd that is just getting into music. Image is very important, obviously to everybody, but especially to young kids. … Plain vinyl is romantic, the whole ritual of the process of handling the vinyl, cleaning the vinyl, playing the vinyl and everything that goes with it,” he said.
Whether or not vinyl ever left music can be debated ad nauseam, but what is certain is that it is here now, and its popularity has perhaps never been greater in the CD age. Proof of this lies in the sales figures above, but it goes further (and more locally) than that.
On the national level, Best Buy is bringing back vinyl in the near future, which is unquestionably a sign of the format’s power. True, the chain is only experimenting in a few select stores across the nation, but it still adds to the strong case of vinyl’s return.
On the local level, it seems Roloff’s store is witnessing firsthand the resurgence of vinyl, as his “business in vinyl over the last two years is up 650 percent.” Given that very strong sales record, Strictly Discs is launching a new website devoted to vinyl within its home site (strictlydiscs.com) called instockvinyl.com.
Maybe this is just the new trendy thing that has come along in pop culture that will die by end of the decade. Or maybe not. Maybe vinyl never left and has just been fighting a near-constant uphill battle for attention these last few decades and has been kept alive by those who value its supremacy. In either case, people who truly appreciate music understand one thing: Vinyl’s where it’s at.
“It’s the original, true long-term art form of listening to the music,” Roloff said.
[Badger Herald]
Michael Jackson at 50 ... What Could Have Been
What could have been: An experts' image of Jackson (left) and how he looks today after surgery (right)
Another Spin for Vinyl
DURING his freshman year at Point Park University in Pittsburgh a couple years ago, James Acklin, now 20, felt lost among the social cliques on his new campus until he got to talking with a student who was in some of his classes. She seemed unusual, and it wasn’t just her look: thick-framed eyeglasses, bangs and vintage dresses. Then, one rainy day in February, the two skipped class and went to her apartment. As soon as she opened her door his instincts were confirmed: she had a turntable. So did he. They both spoke the language of vinyl.
Their bond was sealed as soon as she placed the stylus on an LP by the band Broken Social Scene, he said in an e-mail message. “There was this immediate mutual acknowledgment, like we both totally understood what we define ourselves by,” continued Mr. Acklin, who considers his turntable, a Technics model from the 1980s that belonged to an aunt, a prized possession. “It takes a special kind of person to appreciate pops and clicks and imperfections in their music.”
The ranks of vinyl devotees are growing. Lately, the anachronistic LP has experienced an unlikely spike in sales, decades after the mainstream music industry wrote off the format as obsolete. Major labels are expanding their vinyl offerings for the first time since they left records for dead nearly two decades ago, music executives said. 
While the niche may still be small measured against overall sales of recorded music, the surge of interest in vinyl — and, particularly, its rising cachet among young listeners — is providing a rare glimmer of hope in a hemorrhaging industry.
“Even if the industry doesn’t do all that well going forward, we could really carve this out to be a nice profitable niche,” said Bill Gagnon, a senior vice president at EMI Catalog Marketing, who is in charge of vinyl releases. He said that people who buy vinyl nowadays are charmed by the format’s earthy authenticity.
“It’s almost a back-to-nature approach,” Mr. Gagnon said. “It’s the difference between growing your own vegetables and purchasing them frozen in the supermarket.”
The category virtually collapsed in the late 1980s with the advent of the compact disc. And despite the efforts of various subcultures of supporters — club D.J.’s, audiophiles, hardcore punks — to engineer a vinyl comeback, sales continued to wither as MP3s joined CDs as competition over the last decade. The industry had shipments of 3.4 million LPs and EPs in 1998 and just over 900,000 in 2006, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.
But shipments jumped about 37 percent in 2007, to nearly 1.3 million records. Three years ago Warner Bros. Records returned to the format when it opened becausesoundmatters.com, an online vinyl store stocked with reissues and new releases. At first, any vinyl release that sold 3,000 copies was considered a success, said Tom Biery, who oversees vinyl sales for the company. By comparison, the 2007 Wilco album, “Sky Blue Sky,” surpassed 14,000 copies.
Vinyl is suddenly chic, he said, even among people too young to have grown up with the familiar crackle of a needle carving through the grooves of an album. “I have friends who have younger kids — 13, 15 years old, even 10 — and all those kids want turntables,” he said. “Their parents are like: Wait a minute. What are you talking about?”
Mass-market retailers like Virgin Megastore and smaller record stores like Mondo Kim’s in Manhattan are devoting more floor space to the antiquarian 12-inch disc of late. Newbury Comics, a chain of 29 music and merchandise stores in New England, has sold 400 turntables since it started selling them in June, Duncan Browne, a company executive, said.
Despite the spike, records still represent a sliver of the music business as a whole. In 2007, for example, the industry shipped 511 million CDs. But given the declining interest in compact discs — those half-billion CDs represented a drop of more than 17 percent from the year before — any growth was welcome, executives said.
This year Capitol/EMI is in the process of reissuing its first substantial vinyl catalog in decades. Some of those albums, like “Pet Sounds” by the Beach Boys, are classic rock leviathans aimed at nostalgic baby boomers. But many are albums by contemporary artists, like Radiohead and Coldplay, who appeal to young music buyers, Mr. Gagnon said. Most are pressed on acoustically superior 180-gram vinyl, and many are packaged in gatefold jackets, so they can serve as collectors’ items for young fans who might also have the music in its digital form.
With music so abundant on the Internet, record label executives said they needed to make physical copies of albums stand out as desirable objects in order to get people to buy them. Vinyl albums are up to the task: they are exotic because of their novelty and retro allure, and more physically imposing than CDs. (And the 12.5-inch album sleeve is an ideal canvas for cover art.)
Deluxe editions are trophies of sorts for passionate fans, Mr. Biery said. In September, for example, Warner Bros. Records will release a new Metallica album, “Death Magnetic,” in a five-record box version — each of 10 songs will get its own side — for about $115.
Many new-generation fans of vinyl view LPs as branded merchandise, like band T-shirts or posters, as much as a practical means of acquiring recorded music, said Matt Wishnow, the founder of Insound, an online music and merchandise company. In the last two years vinyl sales have expanded to about 50 percent from less than 20 percent of the company’s business, he said. (The median age of its customers, he added, is 25.)
In an era when “everybody’s music collection is the same” thanks to file swapping, collecting expensive, unwieldy LPs is a conspicuous way for the superfans to advertise their cognoscenti status, he said.
“It’s a customer who wants to have vinyl in their home the same way they want books in their home,” Mr. Wishnow said. For such a customer, he added, the message is, “ ‘When I can have all the music in the world in the palm of my hand, what does it say about me that I spend $15 to $20 for this format that is a pain to store and move and is easily damaged?’ ”
Young vinyl collectors said digital technology had made it easy for anyone — even parents — to acquire vast, esoteric music collections. In that context, nothing seems hipper than old-fashioned inconvenience.
“The process of taking the record off the shelf, pulling it out of the sleeve, putting the needle on the record, makes for a much more intense and personal connection with the music because it’s more effort,” said R. J. Crowder-Schaefer, 21, a senior at New York University who said he became a serious vinyl disciple a few years ago.
Along the way, devotees often cross paths with their parents, who are still upgrading their audio technology. Meghan Galewski, another student at New York University, bought her father, now 56, an iPod for a recent birthday. He bought her a turntable for hers.
“He thought it was stupid that I wanted this old technology,” Ms. Galewski, 21, said. She had to tutor him on how to use his iPod, then rifled through his stacks of records from the ’60s and ’70s to appropriate gems like his original “Woodstock” LP set.
But for Corinne Monaco, 17, who lives in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, her interest in vinyl provides a way to bond with her parents. Afternoons on the sofa listening to Jethro Tull and Jimi Hendrix albums with her father, she said, give her “a chance to see where he was coming from, with the music of his youth.”
INDEED, records force children of the digital age to listen to music in the rigid manner of previous generations, said Scott Karoly, 21, a student at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a recent vinyl convert.
No longer can they use a click wheel to sample songs from Miley Cyrus, Nas, Black Sabbath, John Coltrane and the Scissor Sisters within minutes. With vinyl, listeners cede control to the artist. They let the music wash over them, in the original order of songs, at the original pace. “I have a ton of music on iTunes,” Mr. Karoly said, “but with that music I get A.D.D. really quick. With my LPs, it’s like reading a book as opposed to clicking through articles on Yahoo.”
“When you put on a record,” he added, “it’s an event.”
[NY Times]
